428 

 A PRELIMINARY LIST OF THE FISHES OF TIRHOOT, BENGAL. 



BY 



Gordon - Dalglibsh. 



Owing to the kindness of Mr. F. K. Rawlins, I have received a small 

 collection of some 30 odd species of the commoner fishes of Tirhoot, Bengal. 

 Like most of the Indian rivers, tanks, and jheels, Tirhoot abounds with a 

 varied fish fauna which play no small part in the economy of the poorer 

 native population, all fishes with a very few exceptions being extensively- 

 used as food. Netting to a large extent is carried on, while for the 

 capture of very small species a form of wicker basket is employed, acting 

 on the same principle as the lobster traps and eel baskets of home fisher- 

 men. Very large fish are killed by means of a form of spear made of 

 bamboo and tipped with steel. Perhaps the commonest fishes occurring in 

 the rivers are the Siluridce, which on account of their forbidding and very 

 often, loathsome appearance, are not relished as food by Europeans — 

 though some are very fair eating — but are esteemed by most of the natives, 

 especially the very poor classes. It is remarkable how many of the 

 Clwpeidce (Herrings) and others, as a rule, essentially marine and esturine 

 fishes find their way so far inland ; for more than one species of herring is 

 quite common in Tirhoot. In spite of the voluminous literature that has 

 been written on Fishes in India, Day and other great ichthyologists have 

 given us very little information regarding the life history of any species. 

 The books on Indian fishes are purely of a technical character and really 

 only of service to the systematic naturalist. On looking through those i 

 splendid volumes Fishes of India and " Fishes " in the Fauna of British 

 India series one cannot but feel regret for the paucity of information 

 on habits, etc. And the reason for this is not hard to discover. Most 

 of us in India are too busy to pay much attention to the habits of 

 the creatures around us, and nearly all our spare time is taken up in 

 collecting the different objects we are specially interested in. Indeed, for i 

 this alone we have to depend largely on native collectors. And, again, 

 climate and weather greatly retard those that would wish to study the 

 life histories of the varied Indian fauna. Fishes and other lower 

 vertebrates are extremely difficult nigh almost impossible to study in 

 a state of nature. Much might be done and really valuable informatior 

 gained by the erection of Biological stations for both Marine and fresh- 

 water fauna in special charge of a trained scientific staff. But as things are 

 now we must necessarily remain in ignorance regarding the ways of even our 

 commonest fishes. It is true a lot can and has been learnt by keeping fishes 

 in those heterogeneous receptacles designated "aquariums," and I would 

 urge those sufficiently interested in fishes, to erect one for himself, however 

 rough, and by dint of much careful labour and patience to learn as much as 



